Wire recorder



Oct. 21, 1952 c. B. DALE 2,614,845

WIRE RECORDER Filed Jan. :5, 1951 s Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

60/222 3 3&5?

Oct. 21, 1952 c. B. DALE 2,614,845

WIRE RECORDER Filed Jan. 5, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 21, 1952 c. B. DALE 2,614,845

' WIRE RECORDER Filed Jan. 5, 1951 a Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VEN TOR.

Patented Oct. 21, 1 952 WIRE RECORDER r Colin B. Dale,0ak Park, Ill., assignor to Webster- Chicago Corporation, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois ApplicationJanuary 3, 1951, Serial No'. 204,166

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a sound recording and reproducing mechanism utilizing-a magnetizable medium, such as a steel Wire, tape, or other'material which is capable of being magnetized. In-

struments of this type are commonlyknown as wire recorders, and will be so referred to herein. The term wire will also be used in a generic sense to include any of the long-length magnetiz able mediums such as those already noted.

The wire is regularly wound onto supply spools and, when operated in a wire recorder, is then wound onto a take-up spool, and later rewound back onto the supply spool. The wire may be reup spool, thereby to reduce wear.

head, so that those devices will become effective used many times and is subject to wear and breakage. The rewinding of the supply spool is done at'high speed and much of the wear occurs during'this operation. If the wire happens to break the inertia of the take-up spool causes it to continue to turn so that frequently a bundle of loose wire will form on the spool before itcomes to astop. l

Oneobject of my invention is to provide means for automatically stopping rotation ofthe takeup spool in the event of wire breakage between the spools. This is accomplished by a slack-wire braking device which has an arm adapted to ride against the tensioned wire traveling, from the take-up spool to the supply spool during a rewinding operation; in the event the wire breaks, this arm permits a self-acting brake shoe to advance against a drum at the take-up spool and snub it to a quick stop. a

Another object of my invention is to arrange the arm carrying the brake shoe so that, when it is released into engagement with the drum, the

turning movement ofthe drum will exertav tendency to carry the brake shoe into tighter braking engagement therewith, thereby to assure a quick stop.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device in which the operating arm of the braking deviceis yieldingly urged against the tensioned wire to assist in maintaining the tension 7 that is requisite for compensating for any slight irregularities in the movement of the wire or in the speed of the spools. This arrangement of the operating arm assures aneven and smooth rewinding of each wire onto its supply spool,'so that the next time the wire is unwound therefrom it will draw ofi smoothly and perform better than if the Wire coils were laid in a loose or unlevel condition. T

Another object of the invention is to remove the wire from the bottom of the roove in the pick-up head when rewinding it from the taken It is well known that wear on the pick-up head is greatest whenthere is a rapid rewinding and drawin of the wire through the groove. In the present device, thewire is so removed from the groove by oscillating the pivotally mounted cap over the pick-up head, that its guide slot directs the.

wire outwardly from the groove. This hasbe'en found to greatly reduce the wear on the groove. A further object of the invention is to provide certain mechanical connections between the control handle, the braking device and the pick-up for conjoint operation when the control handle is turned to rewind position.

1 With these and various other objects inview,

the, invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangementof parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims hereto appendedflt being understood that various changes in the form, proportions, and

minor details of construction, within the scope of the claims, may be resorted to without departing fromthe spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention. In the drawings: v

Figure 1 is a fragmentary top planviewof the present wire recorder, showing its cover plate and exposed spools, and indicating various positions of the control handle; w

Fig. 2 is a similar viewinwhich the cover plate isremoved and the control .handle is swung to run position;

Fig. 31s a view similar to Fig. 2, showingthe control handle moved to rewind position;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan view in whichthe brakes are shown in engaged position;

Fig. 5 is a, fragmentary elevational view, taken,

as indicated at line 55 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional plan view,

taken as indicated at line 6-45 of Fig.5; 1 i i Fig. '7 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view.

of the pick-up head;v

Fig. '8 is a planfsectional view, takenas indicated at line 88 of- Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a view similar to, Fig. '7, showing the cap for the pick-up head in the position to which it is turned when rewinding of the wire onto the supply spool takes place; g

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary plan sectional view,

taken 'as indicated at line l'fl-Hl of Fig. 9; and Fig; 11 is a fragmentary elevational view of oneof the spools.

A wire recorder mechanism of the general kind chuck to rotate the supply spool S.

bearings. The details are treated V operated for recording purposes,

recorder. One end of the wire (or leader) is connected to the take-up spool T by being inserted beneath a latching finger it, as shown in Fig. 1. i

The wire'recorder may be provided with acover plate I 4 which is appropriately recessed to accommodate the wire supply spool S, the pick-up head H, and the wire take-up spool'T. It is recessed at one edge for a control handle l5 which has a run position, a rewind position and an intermediate stop position. A. dial pointer it for a time indicator may be provided as a separate unit, but is not part of ,the present invention. w

The wire spool S is mounted on a chuck C and driven bya motor (not shown), through its shaft ll whichprojects upwardly through an opening in the base plate is. A friction wheel is is fastened on the shaft i? near its top end. The tread of the friction wheel i9 is adapted for driving engagement with the drum 2d of. the When the control handle it is either in its run position or its stop position, the motor is caused to move slightly, as-by tilting, to shift the friction wheel liiout of contact with the drum 28. The

is carried on the top-of a. cylindrical drum 2i secured to the upper end 'of wire take-up spool T a vertical shaft 22 which is iournaled in suitable of the motor mount form no part of the present invention. Also; the

spools, when in their operative positions and in driving connection with their supporting chucks, as a single element herein and in the claims. a i

Horizontally aligned with the drum'tl is .a frictionwheel 22 which functions as an idler between the'motor shaft 5 l and the take-up spool T. The idler wheel 22 is rotatably mounted on a vertical stub shaft 23 carried by an arm 2d which" is fulcrumed on a pivot 25 that is fastened to the base plate it. When the control handle of the machine is in run position, the upper end of the motor shaft i? is shifted over to engage the tread of the idler wheel 22 to urge the latteragainst the drum ii of the take-up spool T. Because of the large diameter of this drum relative to [that of the motor shaft ill, the takee'up spoolv T rotates relatively slowly, when driven, the wire speed under these conditions being about one-seventh of that which obtains when the supply spool is beingdriven by the friction wheel id. The driving connections thus established between the motor and the drum 24 are, in effect, positive and nonslipping.

The head H houses the coils for recording sound magnetically on the wire to and for picking up the acoustic signal from the wire, depending upon Whether the instrument is being operated to record or reproduce the sound. The head H also contains an erasing coil for demagnetizing the wire, so as'to clear it of any previous recording when the instrument is being as is familiar to those skilled in the art. Inasmuch as these portions of the apparatus are conventional, a detailed description is unnecessary. A groove or notch i2 isprovided for reception of the wire it by which it is also guided in its movements between the supply and take-up spools. The head H may be mounted to reciprocate slowly in a vertical direction, so as to assure level winding of the wire on whichever spool it is to be received.

the groove E2 of the head.

The control'handle E5 has an arm 3i? which is pivotally connected at Iii to a link 32. A crank arm 33. is concentrically mounted beneath the head, as indicated'at and is pivotally connected with the link 32 by an upwardly extending finger 35 which engages a slot 35 in the cap 26, so that when the control handle is turnedto the run position the Wire will enter the groove I2, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8. When the control handle leis turned to the rewind position, the capwill becscillatedto the position shown'in Figs. 9' and 10 where it acts to advance the wire outwardly so as to by-pass the groove l2 in the pick-up head, This reduces the friction on the .wire, and reduces the wear on both the wire and 1 As that mechanism is not part of the present invention, it is not illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

The present invention provides a slack-wire braking device which is controlled by the tension on the wire, and in the event of wire breakage quickly stops the winding movement of the takeup spool; As shown in Figs. l5, the automatic brake has a brake arm 31 with a U-shaped bearing portion 38 on the pivot 38. The free end of the arm 31 is provided with friction material 4-0 which-is urged into engagementwith the drum 2! by a tension spring ii. During an unwinding operation the drum 2i as viewed in Figs. 2 and 3, and the pivot 39 is so positioned that when the friction material Mi touches the drum further rotation of the drum tightens the brake pressure so as to produce a quick stop by a snubbing action. 1

The brake arm 37 has a slotdli which is traversedby a detent it to limit the movement of the arm. The bearing portion 53 is provided with a leaf spring M, as best shown in Fig. 6.1 This spring normally urges the brake arm out of braking position by pressure on a finger t5 provided on the U -shaped bearing portion d6 of an operating arm il which is the pivot 39. The other end of the operating arm ll is provided with an upwardly extending guide finger ddwhich rides against the inside of the a rewind operation, as shown in Fig. 3. 1 Should the wire break, thearm l? becomes free 'to'swing upwardly, as viewed in Fig. 3, and this will cause the brake to set, as shown in Fig. 4, and stop the wire from spilling from or snarling around the. take-up spool.

The operating arm til performs an added function, due to its yielding mounting, of maintaining turns counter-clockwise,

pivotally mounted on.

a more even tension on the wire w even though there are slight irregularities in the. speed of the two spools. The arm is free to rock slightly under the influence of the spring and cooperate with the pick-up head, thus providing for a smooth and level winding of the wire on the spool, as shown in Fig. 11.

As the slack-wire braking device is only needed during a rewind operation, it is turned. out of operative position when the control lever is turned to run position. This is accomplished by a hook-shaped end portion 49 on the link 32 which engages a downward extension 50 on the arm 41 and draws it to the position shown in Fig. 2. Of course, it is released to engage the wire when the control handle is turned to rewind position.

I claim:

1. A wire recorder having motor-driven supply and take-up spools, and a grooved pick-up head provided with a rotatably mounted cap having a spoolwhen said wire is under tension and permitting braking engagement with the take-up spool when the tension in the wire is relieved, a control handle regulating a driving connection between the motor and either spool, said handle having 1 a run position and a rewind position, a link side wall surrounding the head, the side wall by a wire connecting said spools may be drawn through said groove, and when said handle is moved to rewind position the cap will be rotated to a position wherein the slot is misaligned with the groove to maintain the wire spaced from the groove in the pick-up head.

2. A device as specified in claim 1, in which control handle is pivotally mounted and has an arm connected to the link, a crank is concentrically mounted beneath the cap, and said link is connected to said crank and is provided with a finger to engage said cap.

3. A wire recorder having a housing, motordriven supply and take-up spools in the housing, and a grooved pick-up head mounted on said housing and provided with a pivotally mounted cap having a side wall surrounding the head, the side wall being provided with a guide slot wholly positioned on one side of the axis of rotation of the cap and extending parallel to the wire in its movement from spool to spool, a braking device 'movably mounted on the housing and having a connecting said cap and the control handle so that when said handle is moved to run position the guide slot is aligned with the groove in the head whereby a wire connecting said spools may be drawn through said groove, and when said handle is moved to rewind position the cap will be rotated to a position wherein the slot is misaligned with the groove to maintain the wire spaced from the groove in the pick-up head, and a finger on said link to engage said first portion of the braking device to hold the second portion out of braking engagement with the take-up spool to render it ineffective to stop the take-up spool. I

4. A wire recorder having a motor-driven supply and take-up spools interconnected by a wire arranged to be drawn through afixed path while unwinding from one spool and winding onto the other, means for automatically stopping rotation of said take-up spool in the event of wire breakage between the spools comprising a pivotally mounted brake arm yieldingly urged towards stopping engagement with the take-up spool, a pivotally mounted operating arm having one finger adapted to ride against the tensioned wire traveling from the take-up spool to the supply spool. a second finger to hold said brake arm out of engagement with said spool while the wire is maintained under tension, a control handle to control the driving of the spools, said handle having a run position and a rewind position, a link connected to said control handle and a finger on the link to render said operating arm ineffective to stop the take-up spool when the control handle is in the run position.

COLIN B. DALE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,074,237 Pierce Nov. l fi, 1937 2,535,486 Dank Dec. 26, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 414,776 Germany June 16, 1925 716,409 France Oct. 6, 1931 

